New West Ham owner David Sullivan said: "I am pleased this has all been settled. We moved as swiftly as we could to resolve the matter in a positive manner with Alan and his representatives.

"As football people, we realise this had to be dealt with from a moral and legal point of view as quickly and possible. It was best to draw a line through what had gone on under the previous owners, allowing us instead to focus fully on our challenge of taking West Ham United forward.